Wagering Game With Player Selected Cards

ABSTRACT

A wagering card game where a player is presented with a mandatory set of card(s), a first set of card(s) and a second set of card(s). The player must choose either the first set of card(s) or the second set of card(s), and then a poker hand is formed using the chosen set and the mandatory set of card(s) and further set of cards.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims benefit to provisional application 60/763,401, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present inventive concept relates to a casino table game, and more particularly, to a table game variation wherein the player can select from groups of cards in order to form a hand.

2. Description of the Related Art

Casino table games are currently a billion dollar industry. Currently there exist many poker based games.

What is needed is a new game which can provide players with a more exciting game than prior art games.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an aspect of the present invention to provide exciting variations of card games that can be played in casinos.

The above aspects can be obtained by a method that includes (a) receiving a wager(s) from a player; (b) dealing and revealing a mandatory set of card(s), a first set of card(s), and a second set of card(s); (c) allowing the player to select a selected set of card(s) comprising either the first set of card(s) or the second set of card(s); (d) revealing community cards and dealer cards; (e) forming a best player hand comprising the mandatory set of card(s), the selected set of card(s), and the community cards; (f) forming a best dealer hand comprising the community cards and the dealer cards; (g) determining which is a higher ranking poker hand, the player hand or the dealer hand; and (h) resolving the wager(s) based on which is the higher ranking poker hand.

The above methods can also be obtained by a method that includes (a) receiving an ante wager(s) from a player; (b) dealing and revealing a mandatory set of card(s), a first set of card(s), and a second set of card(s); (c) allowing the player to raise by placing a raise wager, or fold and lose the ante wager; (d) allowing the player to select a selected set of card(s) comprising either the first set of card(s) or the second set of card(s) (e) revealing community cards and dealer cards; (f) forming a best player hand comprising the mandatory set of card(s), the selected set of card(s), and the community cards; (g) forming a best dealer hand comprising the community cards and the dealer cards; (h) determining which is a higher ranking poker hand, the best player hand or the best dealer hand; and (i) resolving the ante wager and the raise wager based on which is the higher ranking poker hand, the best player hand or the best dealer hand.

These together with other aspects and advantages which will be subsequently apparent, reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further features and advantages of the present invention, as well as the structure and operation of various embodiments of the present invention, will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the preferred embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:

FIG. 1 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary method of implementing a wagering game, according to an embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a drawing of an exemplary table layout, according to an embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to the presently preferred embodiments of the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout.

The present general inventive concept relates to a method, system, and computer readable storage which allows a casino to offer to player a poker type game wherein a player can choose from at least two different sets of cards.

For example, a player can be presented with three groups of cards, group A, group B, and group C. The player's goal is to form the best poker hand. One of these groups (e.g., group A) must be used by the player, while the player can choose from either group B or group C to form the player's hand. For example, the player can be dealt ace spades (group A), ace diamonds and three diamonds (group B), and two clubs and seven hearts (group C). The player must keep the ace spades (group a) and choose from either group B or group C. The player would rightfully choose group B, since this gives the hand of: ace spades/ace diamonds/three diamonds, which gives the player a pair of aces.

Once the player has chosen his or her hand, then community cards can be dealt or revealed, and the best player's hand can be formed using the player's hand and the community cards, and the best dealer's hand can be formed using the dealer's cards and the community cards. Best hand wins, according to traditional poker rankings.

FIG. 1 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary method of implementing a method to play a wagering game, according to an embodiment;

The method can start with operation 100, which receives wager(s) from the player. There are two methods wagers can be placed. In a first method, three bets can be made. Once the player chooses which set of cards he or she wishes to play, then two bets can be consolidated and the house can keep the third bet. For example, the player places three bets of $1 each. The player can be dealt ace spades (group A), ace diamonds and three diamonds (group B), and two clubs and seven hearts (group C). The player chooses to keep group B, thus two bets are consolidated (for $2) and a third bet ($1) is kept by the house. Then, the consolidated bet ($2) either loses or wins even money (depending on who has the higher poker hand when the game is resolved), and also any bonus amount can be paid from this $2 bet. If the player chooses, he or she can fold and lose one of the bets (e.g., $1) and receive the other two bets back. In a second method of placing bets, a single bet is wagered and after seeing all of the groups in each group, the player can fold or raise and place an additional wager.

From operation 100, the method can proceed to operation 102, which deals cards comprising group A, group B, and group C. One of these groups is the mandatory group, while the player must choose one of the two remaining groups. As used herein, group A is the mandatory group, and the player must choose either group B or group C, although it can be appreciated that the groups can be named in any manner. The number of cards in each group can vary and can be predetermined. For example, typically, group A can consist of just one card (although in other embodiments it can be more than one, such as two, three, or more . . . ) The number of cards in group B and group C should typically be equal to each other, and can be one, two, three, four, five or more.

The player should typically be allowed to view each of the cards in the groups so the player can make his or her selection as to which group to choose.

From operation 102, the method can proceed to operation 104, which deals community cards and dealer's cards. These are typically dealt face down at this point in the game so that the player(s) cannot use them to make his or her decision as to which group of cards to use.

From operation 104, the method can proceed to operation 106, wherein the player chooses cards from either group B or group C, so that the player's hole cards are formed from either the cards in group A plus the cards in group B, or the cards in group A plus the cards in group C. The cards in the group that the player did not choose can be discarded. The player can indicate his or her choice by speaking his choice to the dealer, using a hand signal to indicate his or her choice to the dealer. If the game is being played online, then the player can use his or her mouse or other input device to indicate his or her choice (selection).

The method can proceed to operation 108, wherein the community cards and the dealer's cards can be revealed. At this point, there should be enough information to determine the resolution of the game.

From operation 108, the method can proceed to operations 110 and 112, which forms the best player hand using the player's cards and the community cards and forms the best dealer's hand using the dealer's cards and the community cards. Typically, the best hand comprises no more than five cards (although this can be any other number of cards as well).

From operation 112, the method can proceed to operation 114, which resolves the wager(s) placed. The player can win even money on any wager(s) placed which are on who gets the higher hand. A bonus award can also be paid to the player based on a poker hand formed from either the original cards dealt (e.g., group A+group B+group C) or the final poker hand formed by the player, regardless of whether the player's hand beats the dealer's hand or not.

FIG. 2 is a drawing of an exemplary table layout, according to an embodiment.

A casino table 100 can accommodate any number of players, such as one to eight or more. Illustrated in FIG. 2 is only one player, but of course a table can accommodate multiple players playing simultaneously against the dealer. Each player at the table can receive their own set of cards, but the community cards and the dealer's cards would remain the same for each player.

A mandatory card 100 (also known as group A), a first set of cards (e.g., group B) 102, and a second set of cards (e.g., group C) are all shown to the player. The player can also make a first set of cards wager on a first betting circle 110, a second set of cards wager on a second betting circle 112, and a mandatory card wager on a third betting circle 114. The player will view all five cards (the first set 102, the second set 104, and the mandatory card 100) and select a chosen set from either the first set 102 or the second set 104.

After the player has chosen his or her set, then community cards 106 are revealed. The dealer's cards 108 are then also be revealed. The player's best poker hand can be formed using the best five card hand (or any number of cards) from the mandatory card 100, the chosen set, and the community cards 106. The dealer's best poker hand can be formed using the best five card hand (or any number of cards) from the community cards 106 and the dealer's cards 108.

It is noted that different numbers of cards can comprise group A (the mandatory set ), group B, group C, the community cards, the dealer's cards, and the number of cards in the final best hand (for both the player and the dealer, typically five). For example, table I presents numerous variations of the game described herein. The ‘A’ column represents a number of cards in group A (the mandatory cards), the ‘B’ column represents a number of cards in group B, the ‘C’ column represents a number of cards in group C, the ‘community’ column represents a number of community cards, and the ‘dealer's’0) column represents a number of cards the dealer is dealt (dealer's hole cards). Of course the numbers used in table I are merely examples, and any number of cards can be used for any column in any combination. Note that for example, in version 2, the dealer has the mathematical advantage over the player because the dealer gets four hole cards while the player gets three cards. In this version, the dealer still has the advantage over the player playing proper strategy even though the player can choose from either set of hole cards. TABLE I Version A B C community dealer's 1 1 2 2 2 4 2 1 2 2 3 4 3 1 1 1 3 3 4 1 1 1 4 3 5 1 3 3 3 5

An example of version 1 will now be presented. Joe bets $1. Joe is dealt an ace of hearts as group A (the mandatory card or pendulum card), two hearts/three clubs for group B, and nine diamonds/nine clubs for group C. Joe can fold and lose his $1 and end the game. Or Joe can raise by placing another $1 wager. Joe then chooses group B, and thus joe's hole cards are now: ace hearts/nine diamonds/nine clubs. The community cards are now revealed: seven spades/six clubs. The dealer then reveals his cards: six hearts/two diamonds/king clubs/jack spades. The players five card poker hand is: ace hearts/nine diamonds/nine clubs/seven spades/six clubs, or the final poker rank is a pair of nines. The dealers hand is: seven spades/six clubs/six hearts/two diamonds/king clubs/jack spades. The dealer has to make the best 5 card poker hand out of these cards which would be done by eliminating the lowest card (two diamonds), to form the final rank of a pair of sixes. Since the player's pair of nines beats the dealer's pair of sixes the player wins $2. Using Table II, the player does not get a bonus for a hand of one pair. In a second betting option with these same cards, Joe can bet $1 on a group A bet, $1 on a group B bet and $1 on a group C bet. Then the group A, group B, and group C cards are revealed. Joe can fold and forfeit the group A bet (and the group B bet and group C bet are returned), or Joe can play and consolidate the group A bet (since this group is mandatory) and the group B bet (since Joe chooses group B) and the group C bet is taken by the house. Thus, Joe now has bet $2 and the game proceeds as above. Joe would end up winning $2.

An example of version 2 is as follows. Jane bets a $2 ante (initial) wager and the cards are dealt and revealed as follows: Group A (mandatory) 9 hearts; group B: 2 clubs 3 diamonds; group C: ace diamonds 9 spades. Jane decides to keep group C, thus Jane's hole cards are: 9 hearts/ace diamonds/9 spades. Now three community cards are revealed: 9 clubs; four clubs; five hearts. The best player's five card hand (Jane's final hand) is now: 9 hearts/9 spades/9 clubs/ace diamonds/five hearts (three nines). The dealer's cards are revealed: 5 clubs/5 spades/eight clubs/seven clubs. The best dealer's five card hand (dealer's final hand) is: 5 hearts/5 clubs/5 spades/eight clubs/seven clubs (three 5's). The player's hand (three 9's) is better (ranked higher) than the dealer's hand (three 5's), using conventional poker ranking rules. Thus, Jane wins the $2 she initially bet. Jane would also receive an additional bonus payout on Jane's final hand of three of a kind, which from Table II (paytable 5), is 2 times the original wager or $4, for a total of $6. If the dealer instead got three aces, then Jane would lose the $2 ante wager and also would not get the bonus payout.

The game can be offered with other betting variations as well. For example any one or combination of the below variations can be used:

A) Even if the dealer has the higher hand, Jane would still get the bonus payout of $4 for having the final hand of three of a kind.

B) The bonus payout can be made on the initial cards dealt instead of Jane's final hand (which includes the community cards). Jane's initial cards (group A+group B+group C) was one pair, which according to Table II, does not earn a bonus payout. The bonus can be paid only if Jane's final hand beats the dealer's final hand, or alternatively the bonus can be paid regardless of whether Jane's final and beats the dealer's final hand.

C) Jane could have been required to place a raise wager, after viewing her cards, if she wants to continue play. If she wants to fold, then she would lose the ante wager and the game ends. If Jane places the raise wager (either equal to the ante wager or a multiple of it, e.g., 2×) and she then has the higher hand over the dealer, then Jane wins even money on both the ante wager and/or the raise wager. Thus, for example, Jane could have placed a $2 ante wager, a $2 raise wager, and then wins $4 since she has the higher hand over the dealer. If Jane has the lower hand, then Jane loses both the ante wager and the raise wager.

D) Variation C, but the ante wager and the raise wager do not earn any bonus payouts, other then getting paid for Jane beating the dealer's hand.

E) Variation C, but the ante wager earns a bonus (e.g., Table II, paytable 5) based on Jane's final hand.

F) Variation C, but the raise wager earns a bonus (e.g., Table II, paytable 5) based on Jane's final hand.

G) Variation C, but both the ante wager and the raise wager earn a bonus (e.g., Table II, paytable 5) based on Jane's final hand.

H) Any of the variations described herein, but the bonus is paid on the initial cards dealt to Jane (group A+group B+group C) as opposed to the cards in Jane's final hand.

I) Jane would be required to make three wagers before seeing any cards (instead of just the ante wager), and can then either fold by lose one out of the three wagers, or play by combining two out of these three wagers and forfeiting one of the wagers to the house. For example, Jane can place three $1 wagers, choose which group she wants to play, and then play with a $2 wager while $1 goes to the house. At this point, the $2 wager can be considered a single wager (e.g., an ante wager) and can then be resolved using any of the embodiments described herein.

J) Any of the variations above (or below), but Jane also can place an optional (or required) separate bonus wager which pays a bonus using a paytable (e.g., Table II, paytable 5) on the initial cards (e.g., group A+group B+group C, or a best hand formed from these cards). Alternatively, the separate bonus wager would be resolved using a paytable (e.g., Table II, paytable 5) on Jane's final hand. Thus, Jane could have made a $1 separate bonus wager, and if it is based on Jane's initial cards (one pair), the bonus wager would lose (see Table II, paytable 5). If the bonus wager was based on Jane's final hand (three of a kind), then the $1 bonus wager would pay $2. The separate bonus wager is resolved regardless of whether the player or dealer has the higher hand.

Of course, while Table II, paytable 5, was mentioned herein as an example, this is just merely one example, and any other paytable could be used as well.

Table II below illustrates five card poker hand and five exemplary bonus paytables, this is for version two of Table I. Of course other paytables and winning hands can be used as well. These paytables apply to a variation wherein there is one mandatory card dealt to the players, and a first set of two cards and a second set of two cards, for a total of five initial cards dealt to the player. In this case, the bonus is paid based on these five cards. There are three community cards and four dealer cards. In this embodiment, the player makes only one wager. If the player's best hand beats the dealer's best hand, then the player wins even money on the one wager, if the player's best hand does not beat the dealer's best hand, then the player loses the one wager, and if there is a tie, then the one wager pushes. The bonus payouts in Table I are paid out based on the one wager. Thus, in this embodiment, only one wager is placed by the player before any cards are revealed. In an alternative embodiment, the bonus can be paid on the best final hand the player has formed in operation 110. The payouts in Table II reflect that the bonus is paid only if the player's best final hand beats the dealer's best final hand. In an alternative embodiment, the bonus can be paid regardless of whether the player's best final hand beats the dealer's best final hand. TABLE II Hand Count probability 1 2 3 4 5 Royal flush 4 1.54E−06 10000 10000 2500 2500 2000 Straight flush 36 1.39E−05 1000 1000 250 250 200 Four of a kind 624 2.40E−04 100 100 25 25 20 Full house 3744 1.44E−03 25 20 10 10 10 Flush 5108 1.97E−03 10 5 4 5 6 Straight 10200 3.92E−03 5 3 3 3 4 Three of kind 54912 2.11E−02 0 1 2 2 2 Two pair 123552 4.75E−02 0 0 1 1 1 One pair 1098240 4.23E−01 0 0 0 0 0 Nothing 1302540 5.01E−01 0 0 0 0 0 Total 2598960

When a player's hand and a dealer's hand are compared, each hand can be ranked according to the ranks illustrated in Table II, and the hand with the higher rank wins. Royal flush is the highest (and best) rank, while nothing is the worst. As known in the art, hands can be further ranked within each rank. For example, a pair of 5's is higher (better) and beats a pair of 2's. Also not illustrated in Table II is the rank of high card. A king high beats five high (or any card value less than king). The ranking of poker hands is well known in the art, and the embodiments described herein would typically use the standard and accepted poker hand rankings.

In a further embodiment, a separate bonus bet can be made for the bonus hand which pays on the player's original cards. In a further embodiment, a separate bonus bet can be made for the bonus hand which pays on the player's best final hand. The separate bonus bet is resolved according to a paytable regardless of whether the player beats or loses to the dealer. In these last two embodiments, if the separate bonus bet is made, then any of the other wagers would typically not pay a bonus for achieving a particular hand (although in an alternative embodiment such a bonus can still be paid on those other wagers).

Table III below illustrates the five paytables in Table II (for version 2 of Table I) and their respective house edge (“Bonus H edge”), the base edge (the edge of the basic game), the overall house edge (“overall H edge”), and the hit frequency for getting a bonus hand (“bonus hit frequency”). TABLE III paytable paytable paytable paytable paytable 1 2 3 4 5 Bonus H −12.85% −12.48% −13.72% −13.91% −14.23% edge Base edge 17.35% 17.35% 17.35% 17.35% 17.35% Overall 4.50% 4.87% 3.63% 3.44% 3.12% H edge Bonus hit 0.76% 2.87% 7.63% 7.63% 7.63% freq.

Note that the bonus house edge is negative, thus this component has a mathematical advantage for the player. However, the house edge on the base game more than offsets the player's advantage on the bonus component, thus ultimately giving the house (dealer) the overall house edge.

Note that, unless stated otherwise, when the player's hand ties the dealer's hand, the result on any wager based on who has the higher hand would push. Bonus awards may or may not be paid on a push, depending on the variation offered.

Any embodiments described herein can also be played on an electronic gaming machine and/or over a communications network such as the Internet. The embodiments described herein can also be offered and played using an Internet casino.

Any embodiments described herein can be played with a standard deck of cards or any type of special deck (e.g. a Spanish deck, etc.) The game can also be played with a single deck or multiple decks (e.g. 1-8 decks or more). Further, the order of any of the operations described herein can be performed in any order and wagers can be placed/resolved in any order. Any embodiments herein can also be played in electronic form and programs and/or data for such can be stored on any type of computer readable storage medium (e.g. CD-ROM, DVD, disk, etc.)

The many features and advantages of the invention are apparent from the detailed specification and, thus, it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such features and advantages of the invention that fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation illustrated and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention. 

1. A method to play a wagering game, the method comprising: receiving a wager(s) from a player; dealing and revealing a mandatory set of card(s), a first set of card(s), and a second set of card(s); allowing the player to select a selected set of card(s) comprising either the first set of card(s) or the second set of card(s); revealing community cards and dealer cards; forming a best player hand comprising the mandatory set of card(s), the selected set of card(s), and the community cards; forming a best dealer hand comprising the community cards and the dealer cards; determining which is a higher ranking poker hand, the best player hand or the best dealer hand; and resolving the wager(s) based on which is the higher ranking poker hand, the best player hand or the best dealer hand.
 2. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising forming a bonus poker hand using the mandatory set of card(s) and the first set of card(s) and the second set of card(s) and paying a payout based on the bonus poker hand regardless of which hand is the higher ranking poker hand.
 3. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising paying out a bonus based on the best player hand regardless of which hand is the higher ranking poker hand.
 4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the mandatory set of card(s) comprises only one card.
 5. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the first set of card(s) comprises only two cards and the second set of card(s) comprises only two cards.
 6. The method as recited in claim 4, wherein the first set of card(s) comprises only two cards and the second set of card(s) comprises only two cards.
 7. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the receiving a wager comprises receiving an ante wager, and after the dealing and revealing, allowing the player to continue to play by placing an additional raise wager, or allowing the player to fold and end the game.
 8. The method as recited in claim 7, wherein the resolving the wager(s) comprises paying the player based on the ante wager and the raise wager if the best player hand is the higher ranking poker hand, and taking the ante wager and the raise wager if the best dealer hand is the higher ranking poker hand.
 9. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the receiving comprises receiving a mandatory group wager, a first wager, and a second wager, and after the allowing, the mandatory group wager is forfeited by the player, and the first wager and the second wager are combined into a total wager.
 10. The method as recited in claim 9, wherein the resolving the wager(s) comprises paying the player based on the total wager if the best player hand is the higher ranking poker hand, and taking the total wager if the best dealer hand is the higher ranking poker hand.
 11. The method as recited in claim 9, wherein the receiving further comprises allowing the player to fold by forfeiting the player's mandatory group wager and returning the first wager and the second wager.
 12. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising, before the dealing, receiving a bonus wager from the player; and the resolving comprises resolving the bonus wager based on the best player hand.
 13. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising, before the dealing, receiving a bonus wager from the player; and the resolving comprises resolving the bonus wager based on the mandatory set of cards, the first set of cards, and the second set of cards.
 14. A method to play a wagering game, the method comprising: receiving an ante wager(s) from a player; dealing and revealing a mandatory set of card(s), a first set of card(s), and a second set of card(s); allowing the player to raise by placing a raise wager, or fold and lose the ante wager; allowing the player to select a selected set of card(s) comprising either the first set of card(s) or the second set of card(s); revealing community cards and dealer cards; forming a best player hand comprising the mandatory set of card(s), the selected set of card(s), and the community cards; forming a best dealer hand comprising the community cards and the dealer cards; determining which is a higher ranking poker hand, the best player hand or the best dealer hand; and resolving the ante wager and the raise wager based on which is the higher ranking poker hand, the best player hand or the best dealer hand.
 15. The method as recited in claim 14, wherein the resolving comprises, if the best player hand is of a higher rank than the best dealer hand, then the player wins a payout on the ante wager and a payout on the raise wager.
 16. The method as recited in claim 14, wherein the resolving comprises, if the best player hand is of a lower rank than the best dealer hand, then the player loses the ante wager and the raise wager.
 17. The method as recited in claim 14, further comprising, before the dealing, receiving a bonus wager from the player; and after the resolving, paying or taking the bonus wager based on the best player hand.
 18. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising, before the dealing, receiving a bonus wager from the player; and after the resolving, paying or taking the bonus wager based on the mandatory set of cards, the first set of cards, and the second set of cards.
 19. An apparatus to display a computer implemented wagering game, the apparatus performing: receiving a wager(s) from a player; dealing and revealing a mandatory set of card(s), a first set of card(s), and a second set of card(s); allowing the player to select a selected set of card(s) comprising either the first set of card(s) or the second set of card(s); revealing community cards and dealer cards; forming a best player hand comprising the mandatory set of card(s), the selected set of card(s), and the community cards; forming a best dealer hand comprising the community cards and the dealer cards; determining which is a higher ranking poker hand, the best player hand or the best dealer hand; and resolving the wager(s) based on which is the higher ranking poker hand, the best player hand or the best dealer hand. 